Nearly a quarter (23%) of Americans are planning vacation travel in the next six months, making the category the top “big ticket” item they plan to purchase in the period, according to a new IAB analysis, entitled “Consumer Travel & The Media.” Falling directly behind travel in spending intentions are computers (16%), furniture (14%) and a new car (11%). The findings also reveal that these soon-to-be travelers are heavier media users than the general population, pointing to advertising opportunities – particularly within digital – for airline, hotel, and cruise marketers.

Soon-to-be travelers are more likely to surf the internet (91% vs. 82%), listen to radio (77% vs. 69%), and read magazines (61% vs. 51%) and newspapers (58% vs. 50%) than the general population

They are far more likely to send and read emails than the average American (94% vs. 83%)

Nearly one third (30%) report that online communities and social networking are among their favorite ways of spending their leisure time, markedly higher than the average American (25%)

Those who plan on vacation travel are also somewhat more likely to download apps to their mobile devices (69% travel intenders vs. 66% general population). More striking is their greater rates of app usage across the board. For example, travel-seekers tend to say they use apps within the six most popular categories more than those in the general population: